Following a highly successful 2018 event, FOCUS, The Meeting Place for International Production, will return to the Business Design Centre London on 3/4 December 2019 for its fifth edition. The event will remain completely free to attend for industry professionals.
FOCUS is aimed at all the creative screen industries – including film, TV, advertising, animation and interactive – and is the only UK trade event where attendees can meet with content makers, film commissions, production services and locations providers from over 80 countries. Each December, the industry’s key players converge at FOCUS, transforming two days of meetings, networking events and seminars into deals and lasting business relationships.
At FOCUS 2019 over 150 expert speakers will address the key opportunities and challenges concerning the production industry today. The programme is developed in consultation with leading industry organisations, including the British Film Institute, British Film Commission, Pact, Directors UK, Advertising Producers Association, The Production Guild, ScreenSkills, UK Screen Alliance, Creative Europe Media Desk UK and Women in Film and TV to ensure that it addresses current needs and concerns.
ARPAS-UK Members can receive a discount on exhibition stands – see the Members Area for more details.
Amsterdam Drone Week is the first official European platform for users, manufacturers, services and regulators, that unites the brightest and most creative minds of the UAS Industry. It is a co-created event which showcases the latest technology and helps unlock the potential of drones and discovery of new applications. For the duration of one week, this umbrella event connects the entire UAS value chain through a diversity of events around drone regulations, new technology and future solutions.
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Routescene UAV LiDAR system used to reconstruct WWII concentration camp
The island of Alderney, a British crown dependency located 10 miles off the coast of France, was once home to a German SS concentration camp. Professor of Conflict Archaeology and Genocide Investigation at Staffordshire University in the UK, Caroline Sturdy Colls travelled with her team to the island to investigate the camp.
Lidar image of the the site with the vegetation removed
The investigation and the surprising results were the subject of a documentary ‘Adolf Island’ produced by the Smithsonian Channel. The documentary showcased Routescene’s 3D mapping technology and demonstrated how LiDAR is currently being used in industries such as archaeology, forensics and heritage to create a bare earth model to identify structures without disturbing or obstructing protected land.
Routescene’s technology uncovers full extent of gravesite
Routescene customer, and frequent collaborator, Flythru, was contacted by Professor Sturdy Colls to conduct a UAV LiDAR survey of the sites at Alderney. Sylt, the concentration camp built and run by the SS, and Longy Common, a graveyard, were chosen based on records from a German War Graves Commission investigation from 1960.
Flythru used Routescene’s integrated UAV LiDAR system. LiDAR is a remote sensing technology which measures the height of the ground surface and other landscape features using laser pulses. Designed for use on drones, Routescene’s LidarPod comprises a carefully selected array of sensors including the Velodyne HDL32 LiDAR scanner. With a scan rate of up to 1.4 million points per second from 32 different lasers angled in a 40-degree field of view, this sensor enables high resolution vegetation penetration. This helps users uncover ground features which are not easily visible from the ground or are obstructed by thick vegetation.
The Routescene LidarPod
Michael May from Flythru commented, “We have been using the Routescene UAV LiDAR system, which includes the LidarPod and LidarViewer, for over 3 years now. For applications where we need to penetrate vegetation it has proved to be a valuable tool. The number of laser hits we achieve on the ground is unparalleled with up to 400pts/m2 through thick vegetation. This equipment is ideal to survey sites which are overgrown or woods and forests which are inaccessible using conventional survey methods. Without UAV LiDAR it would have taken weeks to survey the Alderney sites. Due to the thick cover of vegetation it would not have been possible to visually detected the structures we found. With Routescene’s system on the UAV we achieved these results in a couple of 15 minute flights.”
Speedy data processing
The data gathered was processed on-site immediately after the UAV survey using LidarViewer, Routescene’s 3D processing and visualisation software. Using the Bare Earth Tool within LidarViewer the team quickly and easily removed all the non-ground points to reveal the surface below and produce a Digital Terrain Model (DTM). The DTM exposed previously undiscovered features that had been completely obscured by the vegetation covering the site. The Bare Earth Tool is newly available in the Routescene LidarViewer software package. Designed specifically for heritage applications like this, it considerably reduces the amount of time it takes to digitally remove all features above ground level. This allows artefacts covered by vegetation to be revealed in the DTM.
Michael added, “When you are on-site you need to visually present results as quickly as possible to establish if you have captured the results you need. We had limited time on-site on this project and needed to quickly assess the findings. The data processing with LidarViewer is so quick and easy you can present data within minutes.”
The terrain was covered in thick vegetation
Routescene founder and CEO Gert Riemersma commented, “We are proud the Routescene system is being used for such historically and socially important work. The system has proven to be ideal due to its’ portability and ease of use on such difficult sites. Combined with its’ high level of accuracy, ability to penetrate vegetation and process the data on-site is a real advantage.”
Utilising different survey techniques
In addition to using UAV LiDAR Professor Caroline Sturdy Colls also used photogrammetry, a different remote sensing technique in which hundreds (sometimes thousands) of photographs are taken of a site and stitched together to create an overall three-dimensional model.
Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR), which sends radio waves into the ground and allows artefacts under the ground to be detected, was also used. Overlaying all the results from the three different techniques provided an accurate, highly detailed 3D digital model of the camp, highlighting features of interest both above and below ground for further investigation.
Professor Sturdy Colls said, “The LiDAR and photogrammetry UAV surveys that Flythru completed on Alderney assisted us greatly in our research. The overgrown vegetation and the size of the sites that we were investigating made ground based surveys difficult and using UAV was the obvious choice. Flythru were knowledgeable, competent and friendly and explained every step in the process. Health and safety and securing permissions were at the forefront of their approach. The results were better than we could have hoped for. At SS concentration Camp Sylt many additional structural elements were identified in the LiDAR survey that were previously hidden behind dense vegetation. This allowed us to complete, for the first time, a digital reconstruction of this important site“.
For more information about the Routescene UAV LiDAR system including the software and new Bare Earth tool, please visit www.routescene.com
This covers Airspace Change Proposals, Air Traffic Services and Unmanned Aircraft.
What these notes do
These Explanatory Notes relate to the Air Traffic Management and Unmanned Aircraft Bill [HL] as introduced in the House of Lords on 22 October 2019 (HL Bill 17).
● These Explanatory Notes have been prepared by the Department for Transport, with input from other relevant Departments, including the Home Office, the Ministry of Justice, and the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, in order to assist the reader of the Bill and to help inform debate on it. They do not form part of the Bill and have not been endorsed by Parliament.
● These Explanatory Notes explain what each part of the Bill will mean in practice; provide background information on the development of policy; and provide additional information on how the Bill will affect existing legislation in this area.
● These Explanatory Notes should be read alongside the Bill. They are not, and are not intended to be, a comprehensive description of the Bill
And for more information on the Women in Aviation and Aerospace Charter, go to their website.
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CHIRP – Drone and UAS Reporting
CHIRP has rolled out a drone safety reporting programme to provide a reporting channel for drone remote pilots similar to that provided for manned aviation. Drones should be treated as just another sector of aviation; safety/hazard reporting processes should mirror those used in manned aviation as closely as possible to foster a cooperative ethos of ‘all on the same team’.
Commercial drone operations will be similar to commercial manned operations. Remote pilots and other staff will be expected to report safety issues to their company; the company will forward reportable issues to the CAA. Individuals who are unwilling to report to their employer may wish to report to CHIRP.
Remote pilots flying drones for leisure may wish to report safety issues to seek reassurance or guidance about their actions, for cathartic reasons following an occurrence and/or for altruistic reasons wishing to share an experience.
CHIRP’S ROLE
For commercial drone operations CHIRP’s role should be the same as currently performed for manned commercial operations: to provide a safety net for reporters unwilling to use formal reporting systems.
Reporters will be encouraged to use company or CAA reporting processes as appropriate. For those unwilling to report openly, CHIRP will forward disidentified reports to the organisation best able to investigate/address the reported issue.
Remote pilots flying drones for recreational or leisure purposes may have no background in, or knowledge of aviation, airmanship or reporting processes. CHIRP’s role will be to guide and educate reporters to become ‘air-minded’. Reporters will be encouraged to think of themselves as part of the national aviation community in which the processes, permissions and responsibilities are coherent throughout.
Members of the public wishing to report drones as a nuisance, concern, invasion of privacy etc should contact the police. It is not intended that CHIRP will act as a conduit for such reporting.
Drone reports will initially be assessed by the CHIRP General Aviation Advisory Board. Should the volume of reports require it, we will introduce a Drone and UAS Advisory Board with a dedicated Drone and UAS FEEDBACK newsletter. There is now a bespoke drone and UAS reporting form on our website and we have received our first report.
WHAT IS CHIRP?
It is the UK Confidential Reporting Programme for Aviation and Maritime
The aim of CHIRP is to contribute to the enhancement of aviation safety in the UK and maritime safety worldwide, by providing a totally independent confidential (not anonymous) reporting system for all individuals employed in or associated with these industries.
The CHIRP Aviation programme compliments the Civil Aviation Authority Mandatory Occurrence Reporting scheme. Both Aviation and Maritime programmes also compliment other formal reporting systems operated by many UK organisations, by providing a means by which individuals are able to raise issues of concern without being identified to their peer group, management, or the Regulatory Authority. Anonymous reports are not normally acted upon as they cannot be validated.
Minister Humphreys announces €25m for six projects through the SFI Research Infrastructure Programme
Funding to support research infrastructure across autonomous technologies; flow cytometry and gene analysis; medical imaging; cleanroom processing and metrology; ocean observing; and molecular analysis
21 October 2019: Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation, Heather Humphreys, today announced a €25m Government investment through the Science Foundation Ireland Research Infrastructure Programme as part of Future Jobs Ireland. The funding will be distributed among six research infrastructure projects and will enhance high quality research activities and innovation in areas of strategic priority across a variety of disciplines.
Announcing the awards, Minister Humphreys, said: “I am delighted to announce this significant investment under Future Jobs Ireland. The quality of research being undertaken in Ireland today is testament to our world-class research community. This talent combined with the support provided through programmes like this one maintains our reputation as a great place to do business and work. The successful projects are at the cutting edge of innovation and are helping us to achieve our goal of preparing now for tomorrow’s world.”
The SFI Research Infrastructure Programme provides research groups with cutting edge infrastructure for the performance of high quality, impactful and innovative research. The programme ensures Irish researchers have the capacity to apply for international funding opportunities including the Horizon 2020 funding calls. Additionally, the programme facilitates inter-institutional sharing of national research infrastructure, especially for Institutes of Technology, as well as effective research partnership with industry through collaborative initiatives.
The six research projects that will be supported are:
Dr Timothy McCarthy, Maynooth University – National Autonomous Technologies Data Platform (NATDaP) will provide valuable open Autonomous Technology data (including driverless vehicles, A.I., robotics and drones) from collaborating Higher Education Institutes across Ireland, which can be accessed by a much wider community, including researchers and industry collaborators.
Prof Kingston Mills, Trinity College Dublin – Next generation flow cytometry and single cell gene analysis – this cutting-edge infrastructure, the only of its kind in a biomedical research Institute or a hospital site in Ireland, will significantly enhance Trinity College Dublin’s cytometry suite capability, enabling rapid analysis for clinical samples.
Prof Mani Ramaswami, Trinity College Dublin – Ultra Low Noise Digital 3T MRI which will enable new programmes of research at three SFI Research Centres and permit participation in international consortia including Horizon 2020. This new MRI scanner will allow Ireland to lead in neurodevelopmental research on infants and children, and in the areas of ADHD, depression, psychosis and Alzheimer’s disease.
Dr Graeme Maxwell, Tyndall National Institute – Tyndall 200mm FlexiFab – core (national) infrastructure upgrade which will enhance equipment to enable processing on 200mm (8 inch) wafers, a unique asset needed to drive future innovation in ICT research and industry in Ireland.
Mr. Michael Gillooly, Marine Institute – EirOOS Irish Ocean Observing System: A component of the European Ocean Observing System (EOOS) will further scientific and technical research capacity in key areas such as sea level science, ocean circulation and carbon sequestration allowing us to understand the connection between Ireland and the Atlantic. This infrastructure will also increase opportunities to participate in European funded initiatives under Horizon 2020 and more.
Prof Walter Kolch, University College Dublin – A national platform for comprehensive molecular analysis (CMAP) underpinning chemistry, the bioeconomy, and precision oncology research: from molecules to microorganisms and humans. CMAP will not only enhance Ireland’s competitiveness to participate in and lead international research, it will also support research in five national priority areas, contributing to a more sustainable environment, better healthcare, and the creation of high-quality jobs.
Commenting on the investment, Dr Ciarán Seoighe, Deputy Director Science Foundation Ireland said: “The SFI Research Infrastructure Programme was developed to support excellent research in Ireland. To allow researchers to meet the evolving challenges both globally and domestically we must ensure that they have the cutting-edge infrastructure required for their research to positively impact our economy, society and environment. Science Foundation Ireland is delighted to support researchers by providing them with facilities and equipment which enable them to keep exploring the frontiers of STEM research, and to progress their discoveries towards practical implementation.”
Welcoming the investment, Dr Paul Connolly, CEO, Marine Institute said: ‘Sustainably managing our oceans and understanding the impacts of ocean and climate change, requires increased observations on and within the ocean. These observations underpin research and advice to support policy makers in sustainably managing our oceans and also in developing adaptation and mitigation plans for climate change impacts. The investment in the EirOOS infrastructures will enable enhanced ocean observation and underpin forecasting and modelling in the marine area.’
Dr Timothy McCarthy, Maynooth University commented: “Autonomous technologies offer huge societal and economic opportunities to Ireland. We are only beginning to see the practical applications this technology can provide. This investment will mean that not only can we create very real national capacity in this field but that we can ensure the opportunities have a much broader impact. Investments like this will ensure that Ireland can continue to compete at a global level working in partnership with the leaders in industry and securing funding from programmes such as Horizon 2020.”
The UK’s new Drone and Model Aircraft Registration and Education Scheme will go live on 5 November 2019 (please note that you cannot register before this date).
There will be two elements to the online system.
Anyone responsible for a drone or unmanned aircraft (including model aircraft) weighing between 250g and 20kg will need to register as an operator. The cost for this will be £9 renewable annually.
Anyone flying a drone or unmanned aircraft (including model aircraft) weighing between 250g and 20kg will need to take and pass an online education package. This is free and renewable every three years.
Both of these requirements become law on 30 November 2019.
From 5 November 2019 the system will be available at Register-drones.caa.co.uk
For holders of current CAA permissions or exemptions for drone operations (e.g. such as the permission related to commercial operations as required in ANO article 94(5)) and model flyers holding an achievement certificate issued by a UK model aircraft association with a CAA reviewed achievement scheme:
Remote pilots flying in accordance with a permission, exemption or operational authorisation (e.g. such as the permission related to commercial operations as required in ANO article 94(5)) that has been issued to a named UAS operator by the CAA will be exempt from having to undertake the online education training and test.
Similarly, where a UK model aircraft association already has an established and CAA reviewed ‘competency scheme’, members who hold an appropriate achievement certificate or award (such as the BMFA ‘A’ certificate) will also be exempt from having to undertake the online education training and test.
Any operators who are not covered under the conditions of a permission/exemption or do not hold a recognised association competency will need to complete the free online course.
To allow operators to demonstrate competence if challenged (for example by the police) the CAA will be issuing a formal exemption that can be used alongside existing permissions / achievements and any other relevant documents. This exemption will be in place until 30 June 2020, when new regulations are expected. We will be working with stakeholders in 2020 to put these into place.
For members of ARPAS-UK, British Model Flying Association (BMFA), Scottish Aeromodellers’ Association (SAA), Large Model Association (LMA) and FPV UK
Members will not need to register as an operator with the CAA system if they are a current member of these associations. With permission [of individual members], the associations will collect the registration fee from members directly and supply their data to the CAA. This will take place initially by 31 January 2020 and an exemption from the need to register will be put in place by 30 November to cover association members until then.
The CAA will be issuing an exemption meaning those flying control line model aircraft will not need to comply with the registration or education regulations.
ARPAS-UK and the BMFA have been working on behalf of their members, the other UK associations and the wider unmanned aircraft community to agree these changes with the DfT and the CAA since meeting with the Secretary of State for Transport on the 9th September.
David Phipps, BMFA CEO commented: we are grateful to the Secretary of State for Transport for his direct intervention in this matter which has allowed us to negotiate a more acceptable outcome for our community whilst enabling us to establish a much stronger relationship with the CAA and DfT in the process. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank our members for their support of our campaign which was backed up by a significant number of MP’s, the wider aviation community, the APPG for General Aviation and our special advisers (Cliff Whittaker and Roger Hopkinson MBE). It is very much a case of ‘United we Achieve’.
Graham Brown, ARPAS-UK CEO commented: I think David has covered the points very well and ARPAS would like to add our thanks to all involved and in particular to the Secretary of State for Transport for his intervention. I would add that during the process of discussing DRES we have built on an already effective and collaborative relationship with the DfT and the CAA. We look forward to working with them on the challenges and opportunities ahead.
UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) invites outline proposals for a coordination Hub for the UKRI Trustworthy Autonomous Systems programme. Up to £11.7 million (at 80% fEC please see here) is available to support one Hub for up to four years, starting from 1 June 2020.
Please note that this is a cross-UKRI programme and it is expected that applications will be multidisciplinary, led by and involving any discipline from across UKRI portfolio.
A two-stage application process will be used in this call. The first stage requires the applicants to submit an outline proposal (please see call document for details), which will be assessed by an external panel with the necessary expertise. The deadline for Hub outline proposals is 16:00 on 12 December 2019. All submissions must be done via Je-S.
Successful outline applicants will be invited to submit a full proposal, and this will be assessed by postal peer review and at an interview stage. The full proposal document and further guidance will be made available on this call page.
UKRI is holding a one-day Town Hall meeting on 18 October 2019 to discuss the details of the activity, explain the planned approach to investment and bring together stakeholders from a broad range of disciplinary backgrounds to build new connections and generate new ideas. Attendance to the Town Hall meeting is not a prerequisite to apply for funding, nor will attendance guarantee subsequent funding. For those who could not attend the event, the outputs of the Town Hall meeting will be collated as FAQs and added to this call page as soon as possible after the event.
Please note that the UKRI Trustworthy Autonomous Systems programme will be delivered in two discrete, interconnected parts, the coordination Hub and several research nodes. It is anticipated that the call for the research nodes will be launched in December 2019.
Blue Bear Complete Second Phase of the 5GRIT project
Blue Bear has recently completed the second phase of the 18-month 5GRIT project, culminating in drone flights on an arable farm in Yorkshire and a livestock farm in Cumbria, controlled over 5G from hundreds of miles away in London and Bedford.
The UK’s 5G Rural Integrated Testbed (5GRIT), supported through the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), set out to utilise a partnership of SME and Academia from across the UK. The 5GRIT consortium set out to explore and assess the benefits that could be gained through deployment of shared spectrum radio 5G enabled capabilities within rural communities, where connectivity is typically constrained.
Under the project, a range of ‘rural focussed’ applications were assessed, this included tourism and Agriculture. Blue Bear focussed on the Agri-Tech applications, specifically the utilisation of 5G connectivity to support Drone operation in support of both ‘livestock’ and ‘arable crop monitoring’ use-cases.
Blue Bear, working in partnership with Precision Decision (Agronomy insights) and Kingston University (AI based data analytics), we’re able to capture RGB and Multi-Spectral imagery of a wheat crops from a UAV throughout the growth cycle, with imagery transferred directly from the field back to remote servers (at Kingston University) for analysis. Machine Learning Algorithms were used to assess and detect evidence of weed growth and crop health. The crop health was monitored utilising multispectral imagery and producing various derived information such as NDVI. The ability to send the data back over the 5G network to remote servers allowed the large amounts of imagery data to be rapidly processed and sent back to the operator in the field in less than 1 hour.
The second use-case focussed upon real-time Drone-based Livestock survey. The final phase of the project conducted extensive flight trials in Alston, Cumbria. During these trials, we demonstrated the ability to survey large remote areas (across an upland farm site) and utilise Machine Learning/AI techniques to automate the process of livestock detection in support of health monitoring, counting and identification, and grazing patterns (specifically focussed upon sheep).
A number of UK firsts have been achieved under the 5G project, and a range of benefits to the agritech sector have been identified as a result, including :
Blue Bear demonstrated the first long-distance command and control of Drones over 5G, controlling the drones in Cumbria from over 200 miles away in Bedford and 300 miles away in London. A safety pilot in visual line of sight with the drone was always in the loop, but this paves the way for future BVLOS operations in remote areas from a centralised mission control centre.
Transmission of large multi spectral imagery data sets, typically in the range of 10GB to 20GB were sent over 5G to Remote servers for rapid processing, proving that 5G data transfer speeds can significantly increase the amount of data that can be sent from rural areas.
The ability to have the data rapidly processed and the derived intelligence sent back to the farm in less than one hour paves the way for real time decision making on drone acquired crop data.
The ability to monitor livestock in remote areas of land, reducing the time farmers need to spend travelling to these remote fields to routinely check on their livestock, and the rapid detection of any problems with the livestock helps to decrease any loss of livestock through injury and ill health. Tracking patterns of behaviour for the animals, and also linking this back to the multispectral data of the grazing land allows for better assessment and potentially increasing the yield through better pasture management.
Production of 3D terrain maps and building models of the farms, allowing assessment of structures such as stone walls, fences, woodland and other farm infrastructure.
Ian Williams-Wynn, MD of Blue Bear said “we will be utilising the lessons learnt from the 5GRIT project to inform and support future regulatory development for BVLOS flights, and how this technology can support BVLOS drone operations in unsegregated airspace in the National Beyond Visual Line of Sight Experimentation Corridor (NBEC).”
The full 5GRIT consortium partners included Blue Bear, Cybermoor, Kingston University, Lancaster University, North Pennines (AONB), Precision Decisions, Quickline and WAM (World Around Me). Together we delivered an outstanding project deploying and linking 5G testbeds in a range of areas of the UK including London, Bedford, Lincolnshire, Yorkshire, and Cumbria. The consortium demonstrated applications that enhanced agri-tech, tourism, rural connectivity, and pushed the boundaries of data processing and rapid data dissemination of derived intelligence. These demonstrations have proved that 5G technology can provide significant benefits to rural communities.
